Bulgarian Business Club Newspaperhttps://www.bulgarianbusiness.club
The main aim of the club is to develop and maintain a dynamic atmosphere, where the members can meet, contact each other, create and exchange ideas and develop business opportunities. The club is an active organisation, encouraging its members to participate regularly and directly in the management as well as with other ideas and innovations. Every member is actively encouraged to participate in the club’s activities and to participate with ideas and mentoring to new members.
Mon, 13 May 2019 22:59:55 +0000 en-US
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1 https://wordpress.org/?v=5.1.1BBClubNewspaperhttps://feedburner.google.comBrexit talks: Still no progress in discussions between the Conservatives and Labourhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BBClubNewspaper/~3/TOR4BMRZbMc/
Mon, 13 May 2019 22:59:55 +0000https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/?p=26399Brexit talks between the Conservative and Labour front benches ended in stalemate yet again on Monday despite frantic…]]>

Brexit talks between the Conservative and Labour front benches ended in stalemate yet again on Monday despite frantic speculation a crunch vote was set for later this week.

Tory MPs were told a three-line whip was in operation for Thursday – meaning an important vote was scheduled – before it was downgraded to a one-line whip.

The suggestion a crucial division was being planned prompted rumours in Westminster the Conservatives and Labour had reached an agreement over a cross-party Brexit deal which would see a temporary customs union.

However, a source close to one of those leading the negotiations for the Government told City A.M. that while the Tories were preparing a new offer on a post-Brexit customs union, this had not been agreed with Labour.

After the talks were concluded at about 7pm, a Labour spokesperson said: “Talks continued tonight and the shadow cabinet and the trades union will be updated on what has been discussed.”

A source added that no substantive progress had been made.

A Downing Street spokesperson said:

“In preparation for an update to cabinet tomorrow, today’s meeting took stock across the range of issues discussed in talks over the last few weeks. We continue to seek to agree a way forward in order to secure our orderly withdrawal from the EU.”

The continuing deadlock will pile further pressure on Theresa May to pull the plug on the talks and put the matter to MPs through a series of indicative votes.

It was reported at the weekend that leading government figures, including chancellor Philip Hammond, will use Tuesday’s cabinet meeting to urge May to end the cross-party attempt to solve the Brexit impasse, with all avenues of discussion now exhausted.

May is also facing increasing calls to set out a clearer timetable for her departure from Downing Street, with former culture minister Ed Vaizey calling for her to step down soon after May 23.

He told Channel 4 News:

“After the European elections, that would be the right time for her to stand down.

“The only thing that I could see that would keep her in office is if by some miracle she produces a deal with labour and argues that she needs time to see if she can get it through parliament.”

Vaizey went on to back Michael Gove for the leadership, and the environment secretary told ITV it was “not a no” when asked if he would stand once May had departed.

The Prime Minister is set for a showdown meeting with the executive branch of the Conservatives’ backbench 1922 committee on Thursday to set out a detailed timetable for her departure, including her plans if she cannot get her three-times defeated deal through parliament before the end of October – when the current negotiating extension agreed by the EU expires.

Paul Scully, the Conservatives’ vice chairman for London who represents Sutton and Cheam, told City A.M. he worried what the impact of a leadership contest could have on his party’s standing with the voters.

“My biggest worry is that a leadership election will see a six-week window where we will be talking to ourselves and not the country,” he said.

]]>https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/brexit-talks-still-no-progress-in-discussions-between-the-conservatives-and-labour/Singapore Travel Guide – Must-See Attractionshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BBClubNewspaper/~3/QA-rwcjVzmE/
Sun, 31 Mar 2019 22:00:39 +0000http://bulgarianbusiness.org.uk/?p=25134Singapore is a country which is small in demographical area and wide in its economic status, in South…]]>

Singapore is a country which is small in demographical area and wide in its economic status, in South East Asia. It is a country blend with a variety of cultures as there are individuals from countries like Malaysia, Chinese, Indian and Europe. The most important places to visit in Los Angeles are: Universal Studios Singapore, Singapore Zoo, Night Safari, Underwater World, Dolphin Lagoon, Jurong Bird Park, Singapore Flyer, Segway, Tiger Sky tower, Cineblast, Singapore Discovery and Centre & Army museum.

]]>https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/singapore-travel-guide-must-see-attractions/The Bulgarian National Museum of History Displays Rare Exhibits to Celebrate 140 Years of the Constituent Assemblyhttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BBClubNewspaper/~3/aEQ04r2oQtM/
Sun, 31 Mar 2019 21:00:08 +0000https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/?p=26369The National Museum of History (NMH) marks the 140th anniversary of the adoption of the Turnovo Constitution (1879),…]]>

The National Museum of History (NMH) marks the 140th anniversary of the adoption of the Turnovo Constitution (1879), showing a number of objects for its permanent exposure, which were for the first time or rarely displayed.

This was reported by the press center of the museum.

NMH will show the anniversary silver medal with the image of Antim First, cut in connection with the 120th anniversary of the National Assembly.

For the first time, the luxurious edition of “Almanac of the Bulgarian Constitution” will be presented to the public.

The book was published in 1911 and contains nearly 1,000 pages. It includes 1200 portraits of officials and statesmen and all official documents about the history of the Turnovo Constitution, its creation and changes.

Visitors to the museum will also be able to see original photos of some of the MPs at the Constituent Assembly in Turnovo in 1879 – Petko Karavelov, Dimitar Grekov and Dragan Tsankov, whose personal belongings are in the permanent exhibition.

The fine silver cup and a box with a monogram “C” by Dragan Cankov, as well as the station of letters of Petko Karavelov, leaders of the liberals in the Constituent Assembly, make an impression.

Also curious are the diaries of the Constituent Assembly of 1890, printed in Sofia by Yanko Kovachev, which have long been a bibliographic rarity.

This edition serves Simeon Radev for the writing of his epochal work “Builders of Modern Bulgaria”.

One of the impressive exhibits is the Turnovo Constitution, the original of which is kept in the Central State Archives.

It is bound with red leather, which is inscribed – “Constitution of the Bulgarian Principality”.

]]>https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/the-bulgarian-national-museum-of-history-displays-rare-exhibits-to-celebrate-140-years-of-the-constituent-assembly/Bulgarian Football Nationals Remain without Victory after Difficult Draw with Kosovohttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BBClubNewspaper/~3/xRzbrNY6jRM/
Sun, 31 Mar 2019 20:00:26 +0000https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/?p=26366The National Football Team recorded a second consecutive draw in the European Championship Qualification in 2020 after 1:1…]]>

The National Football Team recorded a second consecutive draw in the European Championship Qualification in 2020 after 1:1 with Kosovo as a guest.

The team played a very hard game in Pristina, where they had to fight for all the points.

The team, led by Petar Hubchev, met a highly motivated rival, who was further charged with the support of the stands of the Fadil Vokri stadium.

The meeting was the first for Kosovo in European qualifications. For Bulgaria, the match was in the heat of the news that Petar Hubchev will leave the team and take over Levski.

Bulgaria led in the 39th minute with a goal of Vasil Bojikov, but the hosts scored in the 62nd by Zeneli. However, Kosovo hit the post and created five excellent goal scoring opportunities.

Similarly to their first qualifying match, the Bulgarians outplayed on the field. In the attack they were content with occasional events. The behavior of the players from the Bulgarian team suggested that they were happy with a point after they had been defending themselves in the last quarter of an hour before their penalty box. In terms of statistics, Kosovo had 62% possession of the ball, made 12 strikes at goal, five of which were accurate. The Bulgarian team had only two accurate shoots, one of which turned into a goal.

At the same time in Pristina in another match of Group A, England defeated Montenegro with 5: 1 and remains with a full asset of 6 points after the first two games.

The point won in Pristina climbs Bulgaria in second place and the team has 2 so far.

WHEN property developer Ho Bee Land bought a commercial site at North Buona Vista Drive for S$410.99 million in 2010, observers said then that the resulting office product would be untested for the area.

The project, sited outside the Central Business District (CBD) in a university and R&D enclave, was targeted at multinationals keen to set up headquarters near their research facilities.

But as Ho Bee tells The Business Times, getting corporates to sign up “was not easy, as one-north is not known as an office location. We struggled initially.”

As the one-north MRT station and retail mall Star Vista were built up, Ho Bee’s move paid off. Since completion in 2013, that building, The Metropolis, has contributed significantly to the company’s annual bottom line, with rental income accounting for 42 per cent of its revenue in FY2018. Today, The Metropolis is fully occupied.

The Metropolis is one of several “decentralised” office spaces in Singapore that have sprung up over the years, as the government continues its efforts to build employment areas outside the CBD – in line with a decades-long policy to put more jobs outside the city centre. Plans are already in the works for three major economic gateways in Singapore’s east, west and north, including a second CBD in Jurong Lake District.

Taking things a step further, the government just this week announced plans to encourage more non-office use into the CBD, which could change the make-up of the country’s traditional business hub and lead more office tenants to move outwards.

Offices outside the CBD see good take-up rates today, though industry players say a cocktail of considerations – ranging from cost to occupier profile – weigh on corporates’ minds.

For well-established non-CBD markets, Grade A office vacancy rates were tight as at Q4 2018: under 1.5 per cent for Tampines, Jurong, one-north and Novena/Newton, according to Cushman & Wakefield data.

Offices there have attracted big names too. In 2015, Daimler signed on to Westgate Tower in Jurong from Centennial Tower, reportedly saving 30 per cent in rental in the process.

Government entities have also moved out of town, with the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) and the Building and Construction Authority (BCA) moving to JEM in Jurong, and the CPF Board moving its corporate functions to Novena from the CPF Building in Robinson Road.

Those moves were likely driven by both push and pull considerations: certain businesses (or parts of the group) do not require a prime CBD location for their local or regional operations, or they would benefit from proximity to the industrial activities in the west region.

“Thus the continued expansion of employment areas outside the CBD will increase the offering of alternative options for business space, catering to a wider range of businesses,” says a URA spokesperson.

Hong Kong’s carrot and stick approach to clean up misconduct and reforms to attract new listings has the support of international institutional investors, as the city aims to become Asia’s go-to stock market.

The Securities and Futures Commission, the market watchdog, on March 14 imposed a record US$100 million fine on four major international banks– UBS, Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch and Standard Chartered for failing in their duty as IPO sponsors between 2009 and 2014.

The SFC’s action came after bourse operator Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing unveiled its three-year strategic plan on February 28 to boost Hong Kong’s status as a fundraising hub for Asia-Pacific companies,

bolster its gateway role for mainland investment and become the market leader in the Asian time zone.

Last April, the HKEX carried out its largest ever listing reform to attract multiple-class shareholding tech companies and pre-revenue biotech companies.

“As one of the active asset managers with operation in Hong Kong, we think the enforcement actions by regulators are constructive to investors, as these can ensure the quality of Hong Kong-listed companies and maintain the reputation of Hong Kong financial market,” said Raymond Chan, chief investment officer of equity for Asia-Pacific at Allianz Global Investors, which manages €505 billion (US$567 billion) of assets.

Financial Secretary Paul Chan Mo-Po told the Post that the SFC and HKEX have the government’s full support.

“We welcome the action taken by SFC. It demonstrates SFC’s determination in ensuring the healthy development of the stock market and protection of investors,” Chan said. “It also sends a clear message that while we strive to come first in terms of funds raised through IPOs, the quality of listing is of paramount importance.”

The HKEX’s goals, Chan said, echoes with the vision of his budget this year.

“Our vision is to develop Hong Kong into the international financial centre of China, Asia and the world by riding on the increasing economic size of China and harnessing global opportunities.

“HKEX will be our close partner in the further development of our financial services sector,” the financial secretary said.

The bourse operator’s chief executive Charles Li Xiaojia also wants to enhance the use of technology and develop a suite of exchange-traded products (ETF) to give it an edge over its regional rivals.

China’s first official economic gauge for March signaled a stabilisation in the world’s second-largest economy, easing one of the biggest worries for the global outlook.

The manufacturing purchasing managers index rose to 50.5 from 49.2 last month, the biggest increase since 2012 and exceeding all estimates by economists.

Both new orders and new export orders – leading sub-gauges that signal future activities – rose to the highest levels in six months.

That’s good news for global investors, as China’s weakening demand had weighed on sectors such as car producers and commodity exporters worldwide.

However, with tariffs and uncertainty about whether a deal with the US will be signed weighing on trade and no sign of a rebound in domestic consumption yet, there is still a way to go.

“China’s economy has improved, supporting a stabilisation in the global economy,” said Hua Changchun, global chief economist at Guotai Junan Securities Co. That stabilisation will also lift the European and US economies, and may lead to a global asset price increase, he said.

Sunday’s release backs up signs of recovery seen in the earliest data on the economy, which showed business confidence and stock markets improving amid policy support and progress in the China-US trade talks.

The government is also showing signs of optimism, with Premier Li Keqiang last week telling business people that the economy is doing better in the first quarter than expected.

Still, there’s evidence for caution. New export orders are still contracting even after the pick-up from the lowest level in a decade in February.

In addition, the rise in the March data may overstate the actual increase in activity, as the Lunar New Year holiday in February weighed down the data then, according to Zhou Hao, an economist with Commerzbank in Singapore.

]]>https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/chinas-economy-improves-to-ease-global-outlook-concerns/Russian companies launch service to deliver export cargos by railroad to Chinahttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BBClubNewspaper/~3/-9DMmPjztNQ/
Sun, 31 Mar 2019 16:00:13 +0000https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/?p=26357The Russian Export Center, Rail Cargo Logistics-RUS and the Fesco Group have signed a trilateral agreement to launch…]]>

The Russian Export Center, Rail Cargo Logistics-RUS and the Fesco Group have signed a trilateral agreement to launch a joint service for the delivery of export cargos to China, President of the Fesco Group, Aleksandrs Isurins, told TASS.

Signed at the Krasnoyarsk Economic Forum, the agreement provides for delivery of non-oil and gas exports in container trains from the Siberian Federal District,

in particular, the cities of Novosibirsk and Krasnoyarsk, to China by railroad and via the Vladivostok Commercial Sea Port.

The service is now operating in a test mode, Insurins said.

“The train runs once every two weeks, in the short term perspective there will be two or three trains a week. One train is from 60 to 75 containers,” Sergey Shevtsov, head of the Novosibirsk branch of Rail Cargo Logistics-RUS told TASS.

International Cooperation and Export is the national project, which comprises five federal projects (“Industrial export”, “Export of agricultural products”, “Logistics of international trade”, “Export of services” and “System measures for the development of international cooperation and export”).

Its goal is to ensure that the share of exports of the processing industry, agriculture and services was 20% of the country’s GDP as well as to increase the share of non-oil and gas exports to $250 bln by 2024

About companies

Fesco Group is one of the leading privately-owned transportation and logistics companies in Russia. It controls the Commercial Port of Vladivostok, Transgarant rail operator, and 75% minus one share of the operator of container platforms Russkaya Troyka.

Fesco operates a fleet of 14,000 units of rolling stock, including 5,000 container platforms, and 40,000 containers as well. The company has a fleet of 20 vessels, mostly deployed through own sea service lines

Rail Cargo Logistics-RUS is a logistics operator operating on the Russian market since 2003. It is part of the Rail Cargo Group – a subsidiary of the Austrian Railways.

About the forum

The Krasnoyarsk Economic forum is underway to March 30. The event’s key topic is competition in development of the Russian economy. TASS is the forum’s strategic media partner.

]]>https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/russian-companies-launch-service-to-deliver-export-cargos-by-railroad-to-china/Daimler and Geely team up to build Smart cars in Chinahttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BBClubNewspaper/~3/cBTt5Sa9ucY/
Sun, 31 Mar 2019 15:00:16 +0000https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/?p=26354With Mercedez-Benz maker Daimler bringing the Smart brand and Geely the development and production, the planned partnership hopes…]]>

With Mercedez-Benz maker Daimler bringing the Smart brand and Geely the development and production, the planned partnership hopes to have the next generation of all-electric cars on the market by 2022.

German car maker Daimler and China’s Geely announced plans Thursday for a new venture to develop and produce the next generation of electric Smart cars in China.

Both firms will share the company equally under the terms of the plan to be finalized by the end of the year.

The first new vehicles are set to go on sale worldwide by 2022. No financial details were disclosed.

Daimler’s Mercedez-Benz will carry out the styling, the Chinese auto giant Geely will develop the engineering, and production will go ahead in a new factory in China.

French production to continue

Smart’s current model will continue production in Hambach, France, until the assembly of the new electric cars starts in a completely electric-powered factory in China.

But Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said that with its Mercedes-Benz division continuing production of a new ‘EQ’ vehicle at the Hambach plant, no jobs will be lost.

“All jobs will be sustained through our new project which will consist of creating a new assembly line for the construction of a Mercedes-Benz electric SUV in Hambach,” Serge Siebert, CEO of Smart France, told the Le Republicain newspaper on Wednesday.

€500 million ($562 million) will be invested in the French factory for the new line, according to news agency AFP.

Geely’s billionaire owner Li Shufu is Daimler’s biggest shareholder. He acquired a ten percent holding in the company in 2018, raising concerns about Beijing’s ambitions in Germany.

]]>https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/daimler-and-geely-team-up-to-build-smart-cars-in-china/Paris tops list of world’s most expensive citieshttp://feedproxy.google.com/~r/BBClubNewspaper/~3/0bhiu29kfj0/
Sun, 31 Mar 2019 14:19:09 +0000https://www.bulgarianbusiness.club/?p=26351Paris and Hong Kong for the first time joined Singapore as the world’s most expensive cities to live…]]>

Paris and Hong Kong for the first time joined Singapore as the world’s most expensive cities to live in, a study revealed on Tuesday, with the French capital jumping six places in just two years.

Zurich, Geneva and Japan’s Osaka trailed closely,

with emerging market cities like Istanbul and Moscow plummeting down the ranking due to high inflation and currency depreciation, said the Economist Intelligence Unit’s bi-annual survey of 133 cities.

It was the first time in more than 30 years that three cities shared the top spot, a sign that pricey global cities are growing more alike, said the report’s author, Roxana Slavcheva.

“Converging costs in traditionally more expensive cities … is a testament to globalisation and the similarity of tastes and shopping patterns,” she said in a statement.

“Even in locations where shopping for groceries may be relatively cheaper, utilities or transportation prices drive up overall cost of living,” she said.

Rising costs in cities are often driven by a vibrant job market attracting skilled workers with high wages, said Anthony Breach, an analyst with the British think tank Centre for Cities – which was not involved in the study.

Aimed at the business community, the EIU survey is designed to help companies calculate cost-of-living allowances and build compensation packages for expatriates and travellers.

Researchers compared the cost of more than 150 items such as cars, food, rent, transport and clothing in 133 cities, tracking whether prices have gone up or down by comparing them with the cost of living in New York, which is used as a benchmark.

A woman’s haircut was about US$15 (€13) in Bangalore, India, compared to $210 (€185) in New York, for example, while a bottle of beer was about half a dollar in Lagos, Nigeria, and more than $3 (€2.6) in Zurich.

Paris – where the high cost of living has been one of the factors behind weeks of violent protests by Yellow Vest demonstrators – has ranked among the top 10 most expensive cities since 2003, with only transport and alcohol offering value for money compared to other European cities.

British cities recovered a few positions a year after reaching the cheapest level in more than two decades due to Brexit uncertainty, with London ranking 22nd and Manchester 51st, up eight and five spots respectively.

Political turmoil in Venezuela plummeted Caracas to the bottom of the ranking, followed by Damascus, Syria, with Karachi, Pakistan, Buenos Aires, Argentina, and New Delhi, India also featuring among the 10 cheapest cities.

But a city’s drop in the index does not necessarily mean life automatically gets cheaper for people living there, as prices adjust to inflation often quicker than wages, said Gunes Cansiz of think tank the World Resources Institute (WRI).

“The cost of living in Istanbul, for example, might seem to have decreased, but since household expenses have increased, this has no positive reflection on the daily life of Istanbulites,” said Cansiz, director at WRI’s Turkey Sustainable Cities programme.